A New Sutureless Illuminated Macular Buckle Designed for Myopic Macular Hole Retinal Detachment

Purpose. To report the anatomic and visual results of a new sutureless illuminated macular buckle designed for patients with macular hole retinal detachment related to high myopia (MMHRD). Design. Prospective nonrandomized comparative interventional trial. Methods. Twenty myopic eyes of 20 patients (mean age, 51.4 years; range, 35–65 years) presenting with MMHRD with a posterior staphyloma, in whom the new buckle was used, were evaluated. The buckle used was assembled from a 5 mm wide sponge and a 7 mm wide silicone tire; it was fixed utilizing the sterile topical adhesive Histoacryl Blue (B Braun, TS1050044FP) which polymerizes in seconds upon being exposed to water-containing substances. The primary outcomes measured included aided visual acuity (BCVA) and optical coherence tomography (OCT) findings. The mean follow-up period was 6 months. Results. Postoperatively, the MH closure was identified by OCT in 8 (40%) eyes. The mean BCVA increased from 0.11 to 0.21 (p<0.005). The axial length of the eyes included decreased from 30.5 mm preoperatively to 29.8 mm (p=0.002) postoperatively. Conclusion. Preparation of the new sutureless macular buckle is simple and easy. Illumination of the terminal part of the buckle ensures proper placement. Histoacryl Blue is effective in fixing the buckle in its place for at least 6 months with no reported intra- or postoperative complications

Detection of Silent Type I Choroidal Neovascular Membrane in Chronic Central Serous Chorioretinopathy Using En Face Swept-Source Optical Coherence Tomography Angiography

Purpose. To evaluate the efficacy of SS-OCTA in the detection of silent CNV secondary to chronic CSCR compared to that of FFA and SS-OCT. Patients and Methods. A retrospective observational case series reviewing the clinical data, FFA, SS-OCT, and SS-OCTA images of patients with chronic CSCR, and comparing the findings. SS-OCTA detects the CNV complex and delineates it from the surrounding pathological features of chronic CSCR by utilizing the blood flow detection algorithm, OCTARA, and the ultrahigh-definition B-scan images of the retinal microstructure generated by swept-source technology. The bivariate correlation procedure was used for the calculation of the correlation matrix of the variables tested. Results. The study included 60 eyes of 40 patients. Mean age was 47.6 years. Mean disease duration was 14.5 months. SS-OCTA detected type 1 CNV in 5 eyes (8.3%). In all 5 eyes, FFA and SS-OCT were inconclusive for CNV. The presence of foveal thinning, opaque material beneath irregular flat PED, and increased choroidal thickness in chronic CSCR constitutes a high-risk profile for progression to CNV development. Conclusion. Silent type 1 CNV is an established complication of chronic CSCR. SS-OCTA is indispensable in excluding CNV especially in high-risk patients and whenever FFA and SS-OCT are inconclusive

The 7-Year Outcomes of Epithelium-Off Corneal Cross-linking in Progressive Keratoconus

PURPOSE: To evaluate the clinical results of epitheliumoff corneal cross-linking (CXL) during a 7-year follow-up. METHODS: This retrospective, non-randomized, single-center interventional study enrolled 34 consecutive eyes of 24 patients with progressive keratoconus undergoing CXL surgery with epithelium removal. Visual, refractive, corneal topographic, pachymetric, and anterior segment changes were evaluated at 1, 3, and 7 years after surgery. RESULTS: Significant reduction of refraction was observed at 1 year postoperatively (P ≤ .006), with an additional significant reduction between the 1- and 3-year postoperative visits (P ≤ .002) and no significant changes afterward (P ≥ .156). Regarding corrected distance visual acuity (CDVA), a significant improvement was detected at 1 year after surgery (P < .001), with an additional improvement between 1 and 3 years postoperatively (P = .001), and no significant changes at the end of the follow-up (P = .518). Significant corneal flattening was observed at 1, 3, and 7 years after surgery (P ≤ .041). Likewise, a significant central thinning was observed at 1 year postoperatively (P < .001), with no significant changes afterward (P ≥ .112). Anterior maximum elevation only changed significantly between 1 and 3 years after surgery (P = .002), whereas the posterior maximum elevation changed significantly at all time points of the follow-up (P ≤ .034). No significant changes with surgery in anterior segment volume (P ≥ .377) and anterior chamber depth (P ≥ .142) were detected. CONCLUSIONS: The effect of epithelium-off CXL in progressive keratoconus is maintained 7 years after surgery. Long-term corneal changes after this procedure may be influenced by an age-related corneal stiffening process